This Blog is Being Continued at a New Address

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Some Recent 'Being Irish' Images

Remembering Eddie Murphy

 

I was familiar with Eddie during my student days at NCAD and later got to know him when I became a member of staff at the college. He was interested in everyone and everything and because of my association with Ballina and the River Moy, when we met, we usually talked about fishing. Not that I know a whole lot about fishing (practically nothing actually), but it served as the appetiser for conversations that could go off in any direction. Everyone that met and knew Eddie liked him immediately. Before he retired in April 2013, as a personal parting gift, I spent the morning with Eddie taking photos to mark the occasion. I guess I knew that life at the college would be a little less colourful in his absence. It was a relatively relaxed affair, I didn't dictate ... we simply chatted and I took photos. On the day, he was his usual colourful self. We talked about many things, including his wife Patricia who was very ill and subsequently passed away a few months later. He talked about his retirement plans and his ambition to interview all the artists from the NIVAL database. Later, I gave Eddie one of the prints from the shoot. He expressed a preference for a black and white print and I duly complied. He later told me that Patricia was very fond of the image and this pleased me greatly. A short time after the shoot, I heard that Eddie was unwell. Patricia passed away in February this year and at the funeral I noticed a drastic change in Eddie. It saddened me when I remembered the plans he discussed with me. Still, he said his health was improving ... it wasn't. Eddie joined his beloved wife Patricia in May. It was hard to believe how someone so apparently strong could fail so quickly. I didn't get the opportunity to speak to him before he died but in a way, I'm happy to remember him as I'd always seen him when he leaned against the book shelves for a friendly chat. There have been many tributes to Eddie in recent weeks, this is mine. For those that knew him I hope this photo does justice to his memory. Gone but not forgotten.

A Sony Day in Dublin

A little bit of somewhere else in Dublin. Presently test-driving a Sony RX100 ll compact camera. So far, relatively pleased with some of the images. Shooting JPEGs as CS5 won't process the RX RAW files ... and I'm damned if I'm going to be shelling out for a CS upgrade to process Sony RAW files! Interested to hear in alternative time efficient strategies to overcome this issue.

Ballina - Co. Mayo

The weather presently, is very acceptable indeed and we're all optimistic in anticipation of the Summer which officially begins this week. The above photo is taken from the pedestrian bridge at the salmon weir in Ballina, a place very close to my heart. It's changed to the point of being unrecognisable since the days of my youth, the only constant being the inexorable flow of the river. Still it all looked quite glamorous in the fresh, bright Sunday light.

March Light

One of the benefits of spending time travelling across the country is the endless variety of light and landscape that presents itself ... onOne of the benefits of spending time travelling across the country is the endless variety of light and landscape that presents itself ... once you take the time to notice it. These three images were taken at different locations in recent days.ce you take the time to notice it. These three images were taken at different locations in recent days.

Tedium of the Daily Commute

To make the journey more interesting, for a few days recently I mounted the camera on a tripod in the rear seat and experimented with slow shutter-speeds and off-camera sync flash. Not the first time doing this, viewers may recall a similar (more successful) shot taken a few years back; HERE. Am presently active in attempting to conceptualise a new way to use my laborious commute as a source of inspiration for making images. Other personal project I'm currently involved with are; 'Cornameeltha', 'The Reek' and 'Sole Mates'.

William Klein visits Dublin

Legendary photographer and artist William Klein, speaking after the screening of his film 'Who Are You, Polly Magoo' at the IFI, Dublin last Thursday evening. I don't do 'hero-worship' but I was delighted to be there to see this great man in the flesh.

St. Patrick's Cathedral Dublin

It's been 20-years or more since I'd been inside St. Patrick's Cathedral, I'd forgotten how beautiful it was. My visit today was formal, attending the funeral of the late Patricia Casey. The ceremony was a splendid and emotional event, punctuated with contributions from a number of sacred music choirs. It was a great send-off and the sun shone to escort her on her journey. My thoughts are presently with Patricia's husband, Eddie. I had the camera in my deep coat pocket (never leave home without it) and stole a few images of the interior after the ceremony. Hand-held, I resorted to pressing the camera against columns or firming it on raised seat ends. It's been a while since I'd shot a church interior and played with the complexities of atmospheric light. At ISO 650, the result is a little soft but acceptable under the conditions. Minor tweaks in ACR. If you've not been here before, it's worth a visit. I was lucky to have a few minutes alone before the tourists returned. Magical!

Untitled - Post-Processing Experiment

An image from the archives used recently in a Digital Darkroom Workshop. Out of focus grab shot destined for the Trash until you familiarise yourself with Daidō Moriyama?

The original colour file was over-exposed and lacked punch. I by-passed a RAW conversion, settled for the default settings and opened in PS. Processing included a BW conversion using Silver Efex with filters and border from Perfect Effects 8. Priceless emotional value ... printable, yes.

See also work from Phil Burns, a fellow 'Are Bure Bokeh' fan.

Boyle Abbey with the 'Brothers' sculpture in the foreground

Shot today. 13-frame JPEG composite taken with 70-200mm lens. 3-stop ND Hard-Grad Filter. ISO 400. 1/100 @ f/8. Manual focus pan on mono-pod.

Lough Key Forest Park

Went walking today with the kids in Lough Key Forest Park, a damp but mild day here. We took a path we hadn't travelled before and walked the legs off ourselves. We happened across this unusually bright and mossy clearing in the woods, I resorted to a panoramic sequence in an attempt to effectively capture the scene and mood.
Shot: Hand-held, 12-frames (portrait format), stitched in PS.

'Requiem' Clontarf, Dublin

We all have those places we continue to return to in the hope of getting a better shot than the last time we visited. This jetty at Clontarf is one of mine, I always tend to stop when passing in case the tide is 'in' or the light is tempting ... sometimes just to eat a sandwich. This week I happened to be in the area but was not impressed with the initial scene. After a while, this guy bikes onto the jetty and contemplates the view. So seeing some compositional elements stack-up, I took out the camera to investigate. It wasn't until I started framing-up that I noticed the floral bouquet fixed to the rail in the foreground ... the narrative began to form. There was no text to accompany the tribute so I can only guess at the tragedy being remembered. Instinctively, we think tragedy, but it might well be celebratory? The cyclist held his pose long enough for me to whip out an ND grad filter to hold back the direct sunlight in the sky. 'Click', 'click' ... two frame bracket hand-held ... that was it. I wasn't optimistic and subsequently forgot about the shot until this evening when doing my usual trawl through the week's images. The colour version is pretty much straight from camera with some tweaks in ACR. The composition reminded me of a 'Joe Kennedy' taken at the '40-Foot' across the bay so in acknowledging that, I made a BW conversion (click image to view on Flickr). I put both up here because I think the processing impacts on the mood. I'm not sure which I prefer ... I'll have to live with them a while. In the meantime, I'll look forward to my next visit and maybe hope for better light.

Recent Local Interest Project

A recent short film I've enjoyed working on explaining the story behind one of Boyle's local landmarks. Barry Feely talks about 'Brothers', the Alan Counihan sculpture adjacent to Boyle Abbey.
Shot using a Nikon D800.

Ridge Pool on the River Moy, Ballina

I spent a lot of my childhood and teens playing and socialising along this stretch of river in Ballina. I've seen it change too but there are still a few familiar aspects to the scene. It was my intention to attempt a 'blue-hour' shot of the new pedestrian bridge (out of view behind me) but I was surprised at how poorly it was lit ... I simply couldn't make a decent image of the scene. Instead, I looked back towards Ham Bridge and focused on the turbulent water rushing into the weir. The rain eventually drove me away but I think I'll be back here again ... soon, I hope.

Easkey Harbour - Co. Sligo

This, hand-held, 13-frame, portrait format, panoramic stitch was taken on Sunday when a few hardy camera club members explored a small piece of the Sligo coastline. After witnessing a beautiful sunrise at Portavade, the rain slowly crept up on us and arrived just as we were about to head home from Easkey. A very pleasant and enjoyable day with good friends.

Sunset - Rush, Co. Dublin.

I'm not a 'sunset' kind of guy, but I couldn't let this one slip by. A few weeks ago we were blessed with some beautiful sunsets. Thing is, they were usually over by the time I got on the road home. Not so this particular day. I happened to be working right beside the beach at Rush and when finished, had little time to spare before I'd missed the chance to photograph this beauty. In fact, I'm standing in the car park, leaning against a sign to keep the camera steady ... no time for tripod. I managed to take about 5-frames, then it was over. Very little PS done here, some exposure adjustment in the foreground ... it really was this beautiful!

Mohill - Horse Fair 2013

Had a great oul day in Mohill at the Horse Fair yesterday, shared with members of Boyle Camera Club. Our scheduled shoot was cancelled due to weather ... however, the promised storm never arrived and those of us that showed for the 'indoor back-up shoot' decided to take full advantage of the event in Leitrim.

I've been away from this space for a while due to other commitments but I'll be posting more frequently henceforth.

Summer 2013 - Worth Remembering

 

It was a dull and misty beginning but on the evening of the 5th, the clouds parted before sunset and the sky stayed clear for the next three weeks. God knows, we all deserved it!!

Memories of a memorable Summer.

Boyle Summer Show 2013

Well done to the organisers, contributors and participants at Boyle Summer Show. The rain stayed away and despite the All-Ireland Semi-Finals (go on Mayo!!) they came in their droves to support it. An excellent and thoroughly enjoyable day out for the family.